A whole oven roasted chicken is a great meal to share with the family. Roasted chicken doesn’t have to be difficult. With this recipe you will have nice and juicy chicken, crisp skin, roasted veggies and a delicious gravy. This is a staple that will make week night dinners a lot easier.
Use the the leftover chicken to meal prep lunches or possibly other recipes for the rest for the week! I love shredding the rest of the chicken and adding it to a chicken pot pie or a chicken wrap. Depending on the size of your chicken you can adjust this recipe and still end up with the same great results.
Ingredients:
- 5-6 lb. whole chicken
- Salt/Pepper
- 1 large bunch thyme, plus 20 sprigs
- 1 head garlic, cut in half crosswise
- 1 lemon, halved
- 2-3 tablespoons butter, melted
- 1 large yellow onion, sliced into large chunks
- 5 whole carrots, sliced into 4-inch chunks
- 1 bulb of fennel cut into wedges
- 2-3 tablespoons Olive oil
For the Gravy:
- 2/3 cup Chicken Broth
- 3 tablespoons Butter
- 3 tablespoons cornstarch
Tips & Tricks:
- Chicken: Do not rinse your chicken int he sink. This will allow for bacteria to be splashed all over you sink and potentially surrounding ares. Simply pat the chicken dry with a paper towel. Be sure to wash your hands as soon as you are done handling the raw chicken.
- Rest The Chicken Before Cooking: Allow the chicken to rest at room temperature before cooking. If you put a cold chicken in the oven the outside will end up very dry before you can cook the middle.
- Use Thick Cut Vegetables: If you slice the veggies too thin they will become mush while they are cooking.
- The Wings: Make sure to tuck the chicken wings underneath the chicken to help everything cook more evenly. Otherwise the wings will end up very dry.
- How Long to roast chicken: the easy rule of thumb is 15 min for every lb your chicken is. Make sure the internal temp of your chicken reaches 165º though.
- Need More Browning: If you chicken isnt browning towards the end you can cover the veggies and already brown areas
- Rest Chicken After Cooking: Once your chicken is fully cooked let it rest for 15 minutes. This will allow the chicken to reabsorb some of its juices instead of leaking them all over your cutting board.
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This recipe is inspired by the book Fable by Adrienne Young. In this book towards the end Fable and her crew get to dine on a feast of roasted goose with bread and wine. While this is not a roasted goose the idea still applies. You could roast and prepare a goose just like this for a delicious meal! This book was a very fun read that i recommend to anyone looking for a pirate tale that isn’t overly dark and has a little romance involved.
Roasted Chicken
Course: DinnerDifficulty: MediumKeep the screen of your device on
6
servings10
minutes1
hour30
minutes554
kcal1
hour50
minutesRoasted chicken is always delicious. There are so many fun ways to spice it up but at its most basic a chicken like this is worth the work.
Ingredients
5 -6lb whole chicken
Salt/Pepper
1 large bunch thyme, plus 20 sprigs
1 head garlic, cut in half crosswise
1 lemon, halved
2 Tablespoons butter, melted
1 large yellow onion, sliced into large chunks
4 whole carrots, sliced into 4-inch chunks
1 bulb fennel, tops removed, cut into wedges
2 -3 Tablespoons Olive oil
- For the Gravy:
2/3 cup Chicken Broth
3 Tablespoons Butter
3 Tablespoons cornstarch
Directions
- Unwrap the chicken you have purchased and remove the giblets and/or the neck (if included). Pat the chicken dry with paper towels. If frozen make sure it is fully thawed before beginning this process.
- If possible, let the chicken sit at room temperature for 30 minutes to allow for more even cooking.
- Preheat the oven to 425º degrees.
- Season the entire chicken generously with salt and pepper.
- Stuff the chicken with the thyme, halved garlic head, and halved lemon.
- Using a pastry brush coat the outside of the chicken with the 2 tablespoons of melted butter and season again with salt/pepper.
- Use kitchen twine to tie the legs together. Tuck the wings underneath the body of the chicken.
- Add the sliced onions, carrots, and fennel bulb on the bottom of a roasting pan.
- Sprinkle the vegetables with salt, pepper, 20 sprigs of thyme, and drizzle generously with olive oil. Use your hands to toss to evenly coat the vegetables.
- Place the chicken on top of the vegetables. This prevents the chicken from sitting in its own juice while it cooks and elevates the chicken for even cooking.
- Roast (uncovered), for 1 ½ hours (check the weight of your chicken for more precise timing). Halfway through, use a spoon or turkey baster to drizzle the chicken with some drippings from the bottom of the pan. Rotate the pan 180 degrees and place it back in the oven (this will help develop even browning).
- The chicken is done when the juices run clear and the internal temperature reads 165 degrees. (Place a meat thermometer into the thigh to check the temperature.)
- Let the chicken rest, uncovered, for 15-20 minutes to allow the juices to reabsorb before you cut into it!
- Making the Gravy
- Pour the chicken drippings into a large measuring cup.
- Top it off with chicken broth to make 2 cups.
- Melt 3 tablespoons of butter in a saucepan over medium heat.
- Add 3 tablespoons cornstarch. Whisk for 1 minute.
- Add half of the gravy juice/broth. Whisk until there are no lumps.
- Add remaining liquid. Whisk for 2 minutes. The gravy will continue to thicken more and more.
- Season with salt/pepper and Enjoy!
Notes
- Nutrition Facts: Serving Size: 1, Calories 554, Total Fat 19.6g (25% Daily Value), Saturated Fat 5.1g (26% Daily Value), Cholesterol 237mg (79% Daily Value), Sodium 345mg (15% Daily Value), Carbohydrate 16.3g (6% Daily Value), Dietary Fiber 3.5g (12% Daily Value), Sugars 4.3g, Protein 74.7g
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